Life Section, Fresno Bee, Friday,December 1, 2000, page 10
A Reader Writes
This author started late in life but says it's all joy.
By Mary Lou Aguirre,The Bee
Hanford- Fans of the Hardy Boys mystery series know the main characters are brothers Frank and Joe. There is no little brother tagging along to solve the cases.
Except, that is, in the imagination of Joseph C. Taylor of Hanford, who loved reading about the Hardy Boys as a youngster.
"I could see myself in every adventure, helping them solve their mysteries," says Taylor, 56. "I pictured every scene in my mind and savored every breathless experience. It filled me with joy, imagination, and excitement. I have always wanted to create those same feelings in others."
Now he is the author of "The Disappearance of Summer Solstice" (1stBooks Library, $7.95 paperback or $4.95 e-book), a fictional story about a girl named Summer and a group of friends who celebrate their graduation from middle school with a hike.
They encounter a strange light and enter an unknown universe, eventually returning to Earth, but finding themselves pawns in an international plot.
Taylor, a native of Utah, began writing his story in 1995, completed the original draft the next year, and began revising it before publication earlier this year.
"I had always wanted to write", Taylor says. "I experimented with poetry and short stories since the sixth grade. My dream was to write novels. Unfortunately, my writing was put on a shelf during the busy 11 years I was in medical research."
Taylor earned a bachelor of arts degree in microbiology and chemistry from San Jose State University and a doctorate from the University of Utah. During the 1970's, he was a fellow of the American Cancer Society and was a Mayo Clinic research fellow. Taylor taught science in high school in Southern California from 1986 to 1989, when he moved to Hanford and began teaching at Hanford High School. He also worked at Corcoran High School and as education coordinator for Chapman University.
"I taught all types of science," Taylor says. "It soon became obvious that students were coming to my classes with less and less prior experience in Science."
The inspiration to write "The Disappearance of Summer Solstice' came when I decided that writing science adventure stories for my students would help give us a common base to learn new topics."
And just as the boy could imagine himself in the middle of Hardy Boys mysteries, Taylor the writer imagines the action.
"I see the scenes of my stories pass through my mind in living color. I type what I see on the computer as fast as I can. It's like going to the movies without having to pay a cent," he says. "I become so engrossed that hours can pass by and I don't notice."
This is Taylor's second novel. His first was "Murder by Chemistry."
"I write books for youth and the young at heart," Taylor says. "The underlying theme is to never give up in the face of challenges and trials. I probably put too many characters in the story, but I wanted multiethnic kids who worked well together."
One character, Tykesha, is based on a Hanford High student. She was a gifted writer," Taylor says. "I asked if she would let me use her name. She was pleased."
Taylor, who says he'd rather be Tom Clancey than Stephen King, has received advice and criticism from professional writers. He considers each novel he reads a writing lesson.
"To be honest, I had no pre-organization in "Murder by Chemistry" and 'Summer Solstice,'says Taylor. "The plots came so powerfully to my mind that I could stop writing for several weeks and come to the computer and pick up the plot."
Taylor has learned to adjust his writing time so it meshes with his job as a consultant with the Kings County Office of Education in Hanford.
"Finding the time in a busy schedule to write down the stories that keep coming into my mind is the hardest and most frustrating part of the writing process," Taylor says. "The rest, including the laborious task of crafting the sentences, gives me a great deal of pleasure."
Taylor writes on a Dell computer in a converted dining room. "There has to be lots of light," Taylor says. "When it is dark, I don't seem to do as well in visualizing the scenes. When I write, everything has to be neat."
He is working on several book projects. His third, "The Terrible Ones of the Lord," will be released by 1stBooks Library in January. The book can be ordered at www.1stbooks.com.
Taylor's latest story revolves around a group of disillusioned friends who fall prey to an East Los Angeles gang. Events lead the high school youths to be able to change world history.
Taylor is also working on a medical-research thriller.
"I first started writing to fulfill a need that I had in the classroom," Taylor says. "It has evolved to a point of becoming a joy, completely exceeding anything I had ever imagined it would be."
The reporter can be reached at maguirre@fresnobee.com or 441-6482.
CAN BE ORDERED ON LINE OR PURCHASED AT OVER 25,000 BOOKSTORES, WORLDWIDE (ISBN: 1585004251 ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.48 x 7.93 x 4.93) $12.45